Suchandrika Chakrabarti on why she decided to start her Edinburgh run today

I’m back at Edinburgh Fringe this year with a new show, two years after my debut in 2022.  I’m not doing a full run either. Two weeks of Camden Fringe, then two weeks of Edinburgh Fringe –  I believe this is the way to go. 

Committing to a full month at Edinburgh every August is like heading off to summer camp. It’s another world, glorious and horrifying, where you’re bumping into other comedians all day long and we’ve all got shows to do (and sometimes even see). You’re leaving the rat race behind and immersing yourself in creativity. You can go to Mosque Kitchen for dinner everyday. The dream. 

I first went up for a month in 2003 as a punter and a student, lucky enough to stay with my school friends in their house on Marchmont Terrace, which they got to keep during the summer back then. I had an incredible time, planning to return the next year (I didn’t, couldn’t afford it) - and idly wondered what it would take to bring up a show of my own. 

Staying with friends insulated me from the one of the major costs of the Fringe (if not from the mice): accommodation. Three years on, as a journalism intern, I researched the figures for this 2006 Guardian article on Fringe costs: ‘Lodgings are the bugbear for all performers. Expect to pay £350-£450 a week for a one-bed flat, rising to £1,250 for a five-bed house.’ How quaint those figures look now. 

Scrimping and saving and torturing credit cards to take your show up is one thing - but can the audience afford to stay in Edinburgh and come along to watch you? The cost of accommodation at Fringe time is a huge, ever-growing problem for performers, and also for the potential audience members, for techs, flyerers, front-of-house staff, even critics - everyone associated with the festival. So if comedy fans are only popping to Edinburgh for a couple of days, or just staying at home, is it a better to use some of August going to them?

Taking a chance on both London [or insert your home city/town, or one of choice] and Edinburgh seems to me like the right thing to do - making my live show available to the potential audience in two cities. 

Tom Mayhew, agrees. He is not taking a show to Edinburgh this year for the first time since 2015, but is doing his solo show, Tom Mayhew: Get Rich or Die, twice at Camden Fringe. ‘You do a few shows at Camden Fringe, to get it in good shape, then perform for a shorter run in Edinburgh,’ he suggests is the way forward. ‘It would save you a big chunk of the cost of Edinburgh, while also enabling you to do a large number of performances across August.’

I was surprised to not suffer from FOMO when I saw bits and pieces from last year’s festival pop by on my social media.  Instead, I felt glad that I understood the Fringe better. Having debuted with a full run, I didn’t have to do it all again in the same way. This time around, I’ve signed a contract with a dream venue, and will be performing in a yurt. 

They’re not asking for money upfront, instead taking it off the advance tickets sold. My other costs are cut in half - I’m paying £950 for a bedroom in town, making it easier to walk everywhere. I even bought a £60 bus pass last time, as I was staying way out near Leith Links, but I won’t need to this year.  

There are other shows doing half-runs that I’ll have miss completely, as I arrive today. It’s annoying having to check and re-check which dates everyone will be there.

It may well be very difficult to gain any momentum for my show, starting halfway through the month. But it’s always a series of risks, this Fringe business, isn’t it? Maybe this is how I find out that the full run really is the only way to go…

• Suchandrika Chakrabarti: Doomscrolling is at Hoots @ Potterow at 3pm.

Published: 17 Aug 2024